Est. 2012 | Colorado Springs, Colorado and Charlottesville, Virginia wedding & family photographer

Well, I’ll start off this blog post by saying this is not a typical day/week for my blog, but after church on Sunday I really felt like God planted this in my heart for a reason…

Over the years, I’ve been referred to as the “go-getter”. What really defines a “go-getter”? The dictionary describes it as “someone who is energetic and works hard to succeed“. It’s true in different forms of my life, personal and business.

In business, I want to create awesome personal experiences with my couples, deliver images and albums in a fast manner, edit consistently, ship out beautifully packed gifts/packages, clear out emails daily. I also need to keep up with behind the scenes business chores like taxes/balancing checkbook/mileage/maintain equipment and supplies, create images I’m proud of every wedding/session, consistent and strategic social media posting, daily blogging, connecting with vendors/photographer friends, submit images to publications/blogs, upkeep website/blog/marketing designs, constantly brainstorming new inspiring ideas and MANY more. These aren’t even just things I “want” in my business, but what people expect in my business. On top of all of these things, I’m also involved with organizing a non-profit Runaway Brides 5K Fun Run. I’m so thankful to have Kara from Best Face Forward who is helping me through the brainstorming process with the 2017 event! In any case, business is GOOD and keeps me busy at least 72 hours a week. So much to be grateful for! In my personal life, I want to be a great friend and girlfriend, stay connected with loved ones, be a good Christian and a child of God, connect with my church, attend social events, keep up with laundry/cleaning/pets/dishes/bills, eat healthy, go to the gym, etc. Any of this sound familiar to your lifestyle? It seems as though I’m struggling to keep up with everything or when I’m excelling in one thing, another thing starts to fall behind.

It’s not particularly a bad thing and I’ve always enjoyed a little bit of craziness in my life. My mom is JUST like that. She stays so busy that I complain to her that she needs to relax and take time off for HERSELF. Does she listen? Sometimes but she enjoys the idea of occupying every day with a plan of action or new project. As I continue to age, I notice this more and more in my daily routine. I create lists upon lists of things to do so I rarely have down time unless I take a vacation. Sundays are typically my day “off” to relax but I end up spending it out of the house attending church, social events, catching up with friends or doing chores to prep for the week. Lately, I have felt a little behind on my high expectations and it has been weighing me down. It’s as if I’m not able to find a balance and I’m just barely staying afloat. I’m so thankful that Kyle makes the 30 minute commute to my house to cook dinner/clean dishes when he knows I’m struggling to find the time to even eat a solid meal.

I feel like I’ve been struggling with this for a couple of months so I decided to block off this week for a “stay-cation” to catch up with work without adding more to my plate (sessions/meetings/etc.). My editing folder is clean so I knew no one would be expecting to see their photos featured on my blog this week. 🙂 It’s crazy what a few intentional working days can do! If you saw my schedule this past month, I’ve had obligations every single day which can really break up dedicated work time. It’s important to schedule weekly “work days” so you don’t see a “free day” during the week and schedule a meeting, session, vendor get togethers or even personal obligations … Basically, any big or small commitment can break up your day and make it difficult to pick up where you left off. I will be implementing scheduled “work days” in my October schedule after I catch up this week. 🙂

While attending church Sunday morning, Pastor Brian was preaching on taking a day off to rest. This spoke to my heart and my soul, especially after feeling like I’m not succeeding as the “go-getter”. I try tackling everything but find myself saying everyday, “Why can there not be more time in a day?”. This really isn’t fair for me to want to spend even MORE time working<= Amen?! Pastor Brian also preached that something has to give when we are feeling overwhelmed. SO!!!! Drum role … I’ve hired some help so I’m no longer taking on all of my behind the scenes business tasks by myself. I’m SO excited for these new changes in my business and looking forward to feeling caught up and establishing a well-balanced daily routine so I’m able to do things that are most important in life. For example, I’ve been really wanting to spend my mornings with daily morning devotionals.

If you’re feeling like you’re not succeeding at everything, you’re not alone. Take time to figure out what can be simplified or even deducted in your workload. Also, make sure to block dates off on your calendar to create intentional work day time and even relaxation time. Prioritize what’s important in life and LIVE. We all deserve it! XOXO!

Be back on Monday with an update on how my catch up week went along with sneak peeks to next week’s blog posts! 🙂 🙂 🙂 Have a wonderful week, everyone!!!

Thanks Simone Fox for the photo!